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12/06-06/07
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The Heath Ledger and Nick Drake Connection
It seems that tragic figures are attracted to the stories of other tragic figures. This was demonstrated by Anna Nicole Smith who had a fascination with Marilyn Monroe. It was also demonstrated most recently when it was revealed to the majority of us that Heath Ledger had a serious interest in the life and death of British musician Nick Drake.The musician Nick Drake has had an ever-growing cult following since his death in 1974 at the age of 26. Nick Drake succumbed to an overdose of a prescribed anti-depressant. It was ruled death by suicide but many question the validity of this ruling.
Much of Drake's music has a somber, haunting quality to it. Heath Ledger had made public his fascination with the British musician. He had recently shot a video for the Drake song, Black-Eyed Dog. The name of the song is from a quote from Winston Churchill on depression. There is a prophetic scene at the end where Heath Ledger is depicted as drowning himself in a bath tub.
Heath Ledger had also expressed a desire to tell his story one day. It would be difficult to make the story an uplifting one. Nick Drake had a long standing battle with depression and what appears to have been social anxiety. He would eventually cease his public performances and only gave one interview in his lifetime. He spent countless hours honing his craft and perfecting his unique style. His level of artistic integrity was something that Heath Ledger seemed to be aspiring to as an actor in his most recent career.
On the whole I do not think that one story has much to do with the other but it does help us to understand Heath Ledger. When we find people fascinating it is generally because they are not anything like us or because we can relate to some aspect of their personality.
I believe that Mr. Ledger saw something if not beautiful, then something very real about Nick Drake's story. He was a man who became lost in his art. He was a man who was nothing without his art and paid the price for setting the bar so high.
Heath Ledger, initially a commercial success, and eventually a critical success seemingly paid the price not for reaching for the pinnacle but for attempting to maintain that same level.
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